"I did." That much he was confident of. Felt the blade sink into her; heard the familiar cries of a dying creature, felt that same rush of adrenaline he always did when he completed the contract he had been set out to fulfill.

But it was all so hollow in the wake of everything else. He wouldn't have managed it without so much sacrificed. Lucanis's expression probably told her everything — even if it wasn't much of a change from his usual stoicism, his brows furrowed and his gaze turned downward, almost in apology; in mourning. "We lost some of our own. Harding, Neve, and we... we are trying to find Rook. It's been weeks."